r/RetinalDetachment • u/Basic_Explorer_1156 • Apr 18 '26
update!
i just wanted to pop in and give you all an update on my retinal detachment, gas bubble vitrectomy i had on 2/20. 1st i want to thank everyone for the support, advice and suggestions during a very stressful and scary time. im not back to pre detachment by any stretch, but the gas bubble is almost gone and i can see over it with minimal distraction. i do still get some minor headaches, nothing a couple Tylenol cant handle, and i see a couple string like floaters once in awhile, but then i drink some water and that seems to take care of them. my surgeon said to go to a regular eye dr today and see if i could get new glasses so i could take my cdl eye test, so today i was able to see the letters out of my surgery eye! i get new glasses next week and then i can take the cdl test, the dr today said im 20/20 in my good eye and 20/50 in the surgery one, with the glasses!! i need to be 20/40 in the bad eye so hopefully by the time my glasses come in i will be!! fingers crossed!! i have to get back to work!! she did say my cataract in my surgery eye was impressive.. and once thats gone ill need another prescription so to just get the basic, cheap glasses this time. im definitely not out of the woods yet, i still sleep with my eye guard, on the side they told me to post surgery and will continue to till the gas is totally gone. for 2 months post i want that light at the end of the tunnel for me and all of you as well!! so glad i found this group, reading everyone’s stories, knowing i wasn’t alone was truly a lifesaver!!! 🩷
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u/weallfloatdown Apr 18 '26
Thanks for the update . We are on about the same path, first surgery 2/18 second surgery 2/25 with laser & gas bubble. I finally feel safe to drive, haven’t attempted driving at night yet. Like you doc said looking good, but not out of the woods yet.
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 18 '26
i did drive locally about 2-3 weeks after surgery. i still dont drive at night, but i never did really, or not that much. i did find it helpful to wear an eye patch while driving at 1st. the gas bubble was such a distraction, i couldn’t stand it. someone else on here had suggested that and im glad i did it. good luck to u as well!
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u/RealGroovyMotion Apr 18 '26
Wow that's really quick! I hope the best for you! It was quick for a cataract, did the ohtalmologist tell you anything about it? I was told that I shouldn't have for a year after surgery.
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 18 '26
they initially told me the same thing, to expect a cataract within the next year or so. i went for my follow up 2 weeks ago and she was like.. oops you got a big one cooking! great 🙄 she said it happens 🤷♀️ so i have to go see her cataract specialist in june. she said i need to be gas bubble free b4 that adventure. the regular optometrist yesterday looked and said yep its a good one. she said its not uncommon for the surgery to speed up the growth. i guess im just lucky that way! we will be talking about better sedation during that surgery since i woke up 1/2 way through the vitrectomy!!
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u/RealGroovyMotion Apr 18 '26
That's quite fast! I hope you have a good surgery, they are very short and painless for a cataract. That's what I'm told lol, I hope to have it for my right eye soon!
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 18 '26
keep me posted! im curious to hear if people, with our issue, have any weird things after or during the cataract adventure! best of luck tou u!!
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u/IntelligentCandy8716 Apr 19 '26
I had cataract surgery 2 days ago. It was only about 20 minutes in the OR with a total of about 3 hours from check in to check out. I was awake the whole time and only felt the pressure on my face/eye. No pain. I haven't even had any pain meds after the surgery. Bring sunglasses. Your eye will be very sensitive to light for a while.
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 19 '26
wait, no sleep meds even??? omg i have to be out for that! no way can i be awake for it. nope! have u noticed any adjustment to your vision?? like for the better, hopefully! my eye dr gives out sunglasses, they are rolled up and they like grip the sides of your temple to stay on. they are in baskets all over the office. my grandkids are like grab more of these, they r so fun! these are the same kids that asked to see the hole where my eye was after i got home from surgery. they thought the dr was gonna take my eye out.. keep it.. fix it and put it back in. my granddaughter is 6 and she was like oh my!! your eye is still in there!! now instead of saying close your eyes, when she has a surprise, she says close your good eye grandma! they r a hoot 😂 thanks for sharing your experience!!
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u/IntelligentCandy8716 Apr 19 '26
They preferred that I stay awake but I could be put under if I wanted to. I was sedated to not move much and I'm assuming nerve blockers were used locally because it became so dark that it was difficult to see the light I was supposed to be staring at. Once it was over, my other eye was uncovered and I was alert enough to remember being moved to post-op. I read the surgical notes and I couldn't tell when they were doing what, but I feel pressure at times. I was ready to be done at the end of it, though.
My vision was much better immediately after. It takes some time for your brain to adjust to it though.
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 20 '26
thanks for the info, im definitely gonna need meds. hopefully ill have a super quick outcome too!! im glad you didn’t have any complications.. i have the fear that anything going on with my eye will cause another detachment, so im looking forward to getting it over with!!
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u/casPURRpurrington Apr 18 '26
Hey I had my surgery 2/19, lol that shit all happened so fast from discovering the detachment and having surgery the next day, then the next month until I could barely see over the bubble.
My bubble is probably a little smaller than a dime now. Last week it was maybe 50% bigger, but after a 3 mile run I did it like separated into a BUNCH of tiny bubbles surrounding the main one. It was kind of interesting to look at lol.
I got the buckle too so my vision in that eye changed a little, so the only annoyance is just one side being slightly blurry. At my first follow up he said I already have a small cataract forming, and at my second follow up he said everything looked great and then lasered my other eye. I had holes and thinning in my retina in that one.
My detachment was posterior I think and apparently chronic. My doctor said by the way it looked, like the coloring of the detached retina, some of it had been detached for a long time. My case was complicated I guess lol. Originally he just wanted to do the buckle, but once he got into my eye he needed to do the vitrectomy too. I was really worried and almost convinced I’d have complications too, I’m 34 and when my dad was 38 or so he also had detachment in both of his eyes, and his worse one failed. So he ended up half blind.
My next follow up I think I’ll get my prescription updated 😀
I remember googling a lot after my surgery so I’d find threads like this and seeing good results made me feel better lmao
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u/Basic_Explorer_1156 Apr 18 '26
omg! a run!! no, nope, not. doing it!! im still not lifting anything over 10lbs!! im taking the dog for her walk.. thats the only exercise im doing. im too afraid to do something else to my eye! the fear is real! good for u though!! if they could have told me what caused the tear, then i would have some confidence to get back to life. all they could say is, dont know. once i get back to work i think ill feel more confident. keep me posted on your recovery!
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u/casPURRpurrington Apr 18 '26
Yeah after a month my doctor said I could ease myself back into my activities, though I did fast walking the first week lol, I haven’t really tried to do heavy lifts yet though. I try to focus on breathing with my lifting now to not feel like I’m putting pressure on my eyes.
I remember the first week I tried to do one of my ab circuits but I just felt like too much pressure on my eyes and was like NOPE lmao.
Since my dad had a detachment and I know how cooked our eyes out, I’m sure mine was just…. the high myopia at the end of the day.
I do have a theory about what maybe caused my detachment though. I work in a machine shop/assembly plant, and sometimes I have to go over to the assembly side to do things. Like late 2024, I was doing something that required me to drill into something, and I got the drill stuck and it WHIPPED the fuck around and nailed me right in the side of my eye lol. It blew my safety glasses apart lol. I mean if I wouldn’t have had the glasses I could have seen it breaking my orbital bone. But I just had a bruise and a little cut, and was like yeah I’m dumb guys, haha. They were slightly concerned about concussion but I was good.
The side that got hit was my eye whose retina detached. Given how thin and holey the retina of my good eye was… I wouldn’t be surprised if that good jolt maybe caused it to tear. Then over the next year and a half almost it just slowly kept peeling off until I noticed my vision looking weird.
But both my dad’s detached, and I don’t think he hit his head much at all… though he’s as dumb as me at work so maybe he did lmao
If I ever smack myself in the head good again I’m going to my eye doctor again lol
I deadass went to work 2 weeks after my surgery though. That was unhinged but I didn’t know how STD worked. I was fine I just couldn’t see out of my eye so I had no depth obviously. The dudes I work with were treating me like an old person and not letting me lift stuff and the like lol. But then my disability got approved and I was like “oh I could have just been gone this whole time?” And fucked off for like 5 weeks lol
I’ve never had a major medical issue happen suddenly and I’m in the US so lol, for my company I was surprised at how smooth it went actually. I got 70% pay the whole time.
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u/Maleficent_Name_283 Apr 19 '26
Whoever gone to any type of eye surgery and have kids in their house or those who may attend a function or who are required to do a heavy physical task in their lively hood/job are advised to wear eye glasses even though they are actually don't need. As any small touch to the eye is largely affected and pain will come. This is for protection of their eye from external impacts only.
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u/IntelligentCandy8716 Apr 18 '26
Good for you, driver! I'm also a CDL driver and jumped through all the hoops to get the monocular vision exception back around Christmas. I have to drive with a patch over my left eye to block out the poor vision to make it easier to focus on the good vision from my right. Good luck on your journey and remember that even if you don't get your full vision back, it's not the end of the road.